Last Saturday, Park Jefferson Speedway reopened under the new management of Wayne and Amy Becker. And the track across the street, The New Raceway Park, helped out.
Two dirt tracks compete for fans and racers in Jefferson, South Dakota, a town of 475. Highway 105 separates the two ovals, a 3/8-mile for Park Jefferson and a ¼-mile for Raceway Park.
“The promoter across the street, Steve Kiraly, brought all of his people over and showed me how to run a racetrack,” said Wayne Becker, of Dakota Dunes, South Dakota. “When I bought the track, I asked him if we could be more partners than competitors. I want both tracks to work together, and even share staff and equipment.”
Becker, an IMCA sport mod driver, also owns Premier Industries. That company manufactures drag chains and services equipment for the ethanol industry. He assumed ownership of Park Jefferson Speedway on August 18.
“If I didn’t buy Park Jefferson Speedway, it would be gone,” Becker said. “Other bidders were going to tear it down. I couldn’t let it go.”
Park Jefferson and Raceway Park bumped heads for decades.
“Wayne contacted me and wanted to get the track going on short notice,” Kiraly said. “It made sense to me for both tracks to come together and offer more racing for both drivers and spectators.”
This past weekend, both tracks benefited from the cooperation. It resulted in big car counts and crowds.
“We had 97 cars in the pits on Sunday night,” said Kiraly. “There is no doubt that Park Jefferson Speedway running the night before helped us. We had such a good tone for the Saturday-night show, it set the stage for the Sunday-night show.”
Becker looks to make significant improvements to Park Jefferson Speedway and the 59 acres it sits on.
“Our first campground will have many campsites and a swimming pond,” Becker said. “Then, we will develop a second campground with a fishing pond. Campsite revenue will help support the track. The buildings need new roofs and siding. As the revenue comes in, we will reinvest it into the racetrack.”
Both tracks deemed this weekend a success for everyone involved. Becker would like to see Kiraly promote both tracks. They’re working on a joint promotion for a three-day event in October.
“As far promoting both tracks, we are communicating and we still have to go through the details,” said Kiraly. “The way things are working now, it is looking good for the future.”
Mike Adaskaveg has written hundreds of stories since the website’s inception. This year marks his 54th year of covering auto racing. Adaskaveg got his start working for track photographer Lloyd Burnham at Connecticut’s Stafford Motor Speedway in 1970. Since then, he’s been a columnist, writer, and photographer, in racing and in mainstream media, for several outlets, including the Journal Inquirer, Boston Herald, Stock Car Racing, and Speedway Illustrated. Among Adaskaveg’s many awards are the 1992 Eastern Motorsport Press Association (EMPA) Ace Lane Photographer of the Year and the 2019 National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA) George Cunningham Writer of the Year.
